problems connecting to the internet

First of all I am unsure if this is posted in the correct place??? I am having problems connecting to the internet through my wireless router..its a netgear. I have the bars that say it is picking up the signal--if I hard wire from my dell laptop to the modem--I can connect. It's just when I try to connect without it being hardwired --it says there is no interncet connection. I reset every thing, called my isp, they say it must be something wrong with the computer( after they did some testing and tweeking. Seems when we reset stuff we lost our "192" number thingy so he got that back and did a bridge. then he said I should call netgear. Soooo I called netgear after some Q and A they said the connection is there, it should work. I just don't know.

I know enough about computers to just be dangerous!! HELP!

Thanks for any tid bit of info. It has to be something easy...i think?